God Says Go Again!....

Today is June 26, 2009 and I'm preparing to get on a plane to go to Mariupol, Ukraine with the wonderful friends you see on the picture above. We're going to teach English through the same bible program (LST) I did last year in Japan with my friend (Phyllis). The program is called Let's Start Talking. Look it up on the net to learn more about it.

I tried to find every excuse to "NOT" go, but God kept telling me to serve him this way again. And the other voice of reason bringing up the rear was my dear husband, James. I love this man! He loves God first and always encourages me to do what's right in the eyes of the Lord. The only downfall to participating in this work is being away from my honey this long (3 weeks). Maybe we'll be able to do this work together one day. Well, we actually do as James has a reader here in Arlington using the same program. Our church is led in this work locally by the guidance of Scott and LuAnn Snow. Thanks, Snow Birds! :)

Thank you God, for sending me James. Boy did I need you and him! Ha!

God has blessed me with the talent to teach so I do enjoy this work. He also gave me the personality that loves being around people...of all types. So, I'm answering his call again to meet and teach a whole new set of people. Thank you God!

I am a littel nervous, but so ready to plant seeds for Christ. Look at people of Ukraine, here comes more Woodland Westers. I say that because our Outreach Minister (Tim Burrow) and very dedicated servant (Hal Pendergraft) are already there getting things ready for us.

Check out the Ukranian blog my teammate, Brent (young cat in our group) set up. It's http://lstukraine.blogspot.com/

See you soon,

Tommie----miss you Phyllis :)

It's Been a Long Time

It's been a long time since I posted on here, but tonight I decided to do a little blogging! Everything's been going fairly well for me and my family. We have some trials going on, but nevertheless, we're thankful and grateful to God for all the blessings he's bestowed upon our family.



My school kids are moving right along with their academics. Boy, did they really get into the election! If my school walls could talk, your ears would be burning just hearing all my little rascals had to say about what their parents were saying about the election.......wow! Anyway, the election is over and we have what seems to be a good man about to lead our country. Presidential Elect Barack Obama will need our prayers as he takes on his this new position.



My family will be here for this Thanksgiving. I just pray I don't over eat. It's just so hard to turn down my mom's cooking! Ha!



I guess you noticed I did a little face lift to my blog. I hope it looks okay. I'd like to figure out how to get one of those cool new layouts. Maybe I'll work on that over the holidays.



Bye.....

Continued Feelings

After being back home since July 8, Phyllis and I have gotten our sleep patterns under control. It was hard to stay awake during the day time after being used to the 14 hour difference between here and Tomobe, Japan.

I love being home with my family. They are blessings from God...even when we have our little family spats! Ha! I missed my friends a ton too. But I'm also wrestling with the feeling of missing my new reader/friends in Japan. I pray hard for each of them that they may continue learning about God and his son, Jesus.

Our trip to Japan was one of the most amazing things I've ever done. To be able to teach English through the bible opened up many thoughts and emotions for me. I've done Friends Speak before, but something about going out into the world touched my heart in a different way. I know you can evangelize anywhere (even across the street here), but seeing another part of God's creation was wonderful.

The night we arrived home, my eyes quickly scanned the airport looking for my honey! As we came down the escalator, I saw Phillip first standing with flowers in his hands (Phyllis' son) then looked to the right and saw the love of my life standing with flowers in his hands too. My breath was taken away by the smile James had on his face. I fell in love all over again! Jerry (one of my older boys) was there at the airport too because he wasn't able to play with his brothers at their softball game that night.

Along with the Taga team, Phyllis and I shared our thoughts about the missions work we did in Japan with our congregation. Jake/Tanya, Scott/Luanne/Tyler, and Phyllis and I all thank all our contributors for helping sponsor our work this summer. I personally, pray God will lead me back to Japan next year to do this work again....although 3 weeks is a long time to be away from my hubby. He actually encouraged me to do this work. That's just another reason why I'm crazy about the man! Ha! He puts God and his work first in order to be a good leader for our family.

What's next for me, lots of listening to God about all things. When another reader comes up, I'll do Friends Speak again. I will continue sharing my faith and testimonies everywhere I go. I've done a few workshops since returning home, have gone on a couple of short out of town trips, and will prepare myself for school to start in a few weeks.

Oh, I've been in touch with some of my reader/friends. A couple have signed up to do a continued LST session with the missionaries in August. I believe I have that correct.

Maybe I'll add some other pictures to this blog in a day or two. For now, I'm just glad to be home.

Tommie

Headed Home

Good Morning Everyone,

Our time has come to a close here in Tomobe. God has certainly taken us and our readers on a wonderful journey together. Each day Phyllis and I were amazed with our new friends and their desires. Many feel something tugging at their hearts. We believe that something is God. We`ve been treated as family here. Our readers don`t understand completely about God/Jesus, but they have certainly shown the love of Jesus to us. We pray they will continue studying and one day become our sisters and brothers in Christ. We are patient. We know it takes time. We`ve planted the seeds.

This past Saturday, the new LST team from Oregon arrived. Two men, Matt and Rolland, took over Monday as Sunday was really a day for us to introduce the readers to Matt and Rolland. They did do a lesson with some of the readers. Phyllis and I felt like "Mother Hens" passing our chicks along. Ha! The readers are in good hands.....God`s hands delivered through Matt and Rolland.

We will do another blog with closing pictures when we get home. Pray for our safety as our flight lives here Tuesday evening at 7:00 which will actually be Tuesday morning there at 5:00 a.m.

We thank each of you for praying for us, supporting us financially, and for encouraging us to serve. Now, when will you allow us do the same for you? We know some of you are having your hearts tugged to either serve here or in your neighborhood in Arlington.

In God`s Love,
Phyllis and Tommie

Soba Night with Mr. and Mrs. Sugaya

These pictures are out of order......this is the meal the Sugayas made for us Thursday night. I don`t know how to rotate the pictures....sorry! tempura, sushi, soba, veggie gelatins, and mango cream for dessert......mmm....good!There was different dipping sauce for each food item.
Mr. Sugaya cutting the soba after Mrs. Sugaya made it below.
This couple has their own recipe for soba (buckwheat noodles). Yummy to the tummy, I tell you! Look how Masako got busy with her head tie. You roll the dough out sort of like pizza.
Phyllis had a turn at rolling the dough out too. Her pictures are on her camera which the disk doesn`t fit into this computer.
Here, the Sugayas are disgussing the exact measurements for the ingredients. Mr. S is an excellent bowler and furniture maker. She says he`s usually quiet, but he talked a lot Thursday night. I think this couple reminded me of Phil and Terri P. Mr. S`s mannerisms were even like yours, Phil. I loved watching how they worked together. I think I`ll try to include a video of this night. You led me to try this Tanya W. Thank you for leading an old woman into new areas.

Viewing Pleasure

Phyllis explaining the song "Yankee Doodle Dandy" to the crowd. This little girl`s mother actually reads with Jeanne....I think! Ha! Anyway, this little girl knew the song from her older brother`s class at school. EVERYONE DID A GREAT JOB SINGING!

My buddy and I checking out the food we prepared for the July 4th party. Phyllis and I recognize each of our strengths and have used them to help make our journey successful. We know God blessed us by bringing us and our talents together for his purpose. We`ve both grown in various ways and love what God has done with us. If I`m ever asked to choose another teammate for work such as LST, I`ll gladly choose Phyllis again. Was everything perfect... certainly not, but we`ve had some great devotionals together, have laughed about the most silly things you can imagine, have seen another part of this wonderful world God made, and have witnessed the love of Christ in many ways.
Another fire-works picture.
This is Royoko. She went with us to Mito today. Diggs, we know your former city well now. We walked all along the shops near the big train station today (Friday). Ryoko was shy and skeptical at first, but came right out of her shell with Phyllis` attention. She made us some very artistic earrings. Rachel, one pair might go to you as I haven`t decided if they`re too long for me or not. Y`all know I don`t have much of a neck! Ha! Ha!
This is part of the Wednesday night Ladies class Jeanne host from 8-9:30p.m. (yes...late schedule but works for everyone). Jeanne is a very hard worker for God.
front row...my reader--Yuriko Sugaya (ask me later about the doll her mother gave me) , Phyllis, Elyssa, my reader--Sanae Chiba (been studying for l0 years), my reader--Sachiko Anzo
back row....Phyllis` reader Tokono, regular Wed. class participant (name escapes me right now), Masako Sugaya (regular Wed. class member) (soba (buckwheat noodles...homemade) queen...invited us to her house for a meal fit for royalty, Jeanne (so sweet), and me.

There are actually more Wed. night regular members but they couldn`t be there this night. After hanging out one night with Chiba-san and Anzo-san, we decided to introduce them to Yuriko so we asked the three of them to come to the Wed. class and meet. They did and Yuriko Sugaya-san says she wants to go back to the class again. Connections connections connections. Masako and Chiba are friends...Chiba and Anzo have been friends for 17 years so the three have an English Conversation class at Anzo`s home once or twice a month. I think Yuriko might join them as well in the future. Anzo and Yuriko discovered they were at the same school around the same time while in Jr. High or High School. They squealed when they realized that fact! Women, we`re all the same no matter where we`re from.
Balloon Pop Game at the July 4th Party....actually June 28th.

Happy Birthday America!!!

Phyllis and I pray you and your families will have a Happy July 4th Holiday together as we remember our country`s beginning. Phyllis pulled off an excellent (early......actually had the party June 28th due to other plans from the church this coming Saturday the 5th) celebration between our readers and the church members. We had an abundance of food ( chips, sandwiches (p/b, tuna, and egg salad), cookies, and of course mugicha tea. The games and laughter were wonderful! In the picture above, the party ended with most everyone going outside to shoot off fireworks. What fun! The kids just squealed with delight to use the sparklers. They love fire-works here and have some the kids at WW would really want, but we can`t bring those items back.....sorry kiddos! Ha! God gave us perfect weather for this event.


Before the party actually got started, some of kids and grownups got busy playing with the balloons Phyllis and Elyssa blew up while I was with my readers. There were notes inside each balloon. When the balloon pops, each person had to perform the task on the note. The party goers had to sit on their balloons to pop them! You should have seen the expressions on some of the older members faces....priceless...didn`t catch them on film as I had walked away from my camera.


Here`s Phyllis playing Jengo with some folks before the real party started. Our new friends really liked this game as some are engineers themselves. I think I`ll add another picture on another post showing how the men really got into this game. I`m so proud of Phyllis. She worked really hard on her planning. And thank you Tammy (Phyllis` daughter) for all your help with the game ideas too. Your mom has been a great teammate.
And here`s the food table. These people love mayonnaise! I heard Phyllis and Elyssa talking about the egg salad and Elyssa suggested adding a little more mayo.........never would have thought mayonnaise would be so popular here! Everything was delicious. Can you see the napkins? Good old America! Jeanne also let us use some patriotic cups to drink from during the party. Everything was grand. I think I mentioned before about a young woman named Ayia helping us decorate. Well....she helped us again Saturday. She has an eye for details. We have readers on Saturdays too so it`s so nice to have that extra help feeling in on details while we`re reading and then doing our party chores.

This is Ayia and her daughter Lisa (being helped by Marlin) playing pin the star on the flag. I`m sure you`ve played pin the tail on the donkey before, so this gamed followed the same rules. The readers and church members had a great time celebrating the birth of our nation. Our July 4th party was a great success of bringing everyone together.

This coming Saturday and Sunday will be our last days with our readers. We will miss them, but know we`ve done what we came to do....plant seeds for Christ through English classes. Phyllis and I have seen some growth in a few of our readers. I think we`ve given out four Japanese bibles to those really ready to study more on their own. You might not think that`s great, but remember it takes years of study and trust building for the average person here. It isn`t to push the bible down anyone`s throat and think that will win them over. It`s love, patience, compassion, and time that will allow the readers (anyone actually) to see Jesus through our actions. Rushed baptisms don`t necessarily mean a thing!

I will add a few other blogs behind this one containing random pictures.

Pray for us as we end our work/stay here. Pray for the readers that they will continue seeking after the Oregon team leaves. Marlin and Jeanne will place as many of them as they can into followup group sessions with Mark and Elissa.

See you soon,
Tom Cat

Okay Nita Bita!

Read about this picture below the third picture. I added it after I started this blog and I can`t placed it with the information. I haven`t mastered this blogging yet! Look at Elyssa`s bump. I guess Mark and Elyssa have become my new `play` kids like so many others at Woodland West. Don`t worry Joe, Jerry, Andrew, and Rachel; you`re all still my number one kids! Ha! I think I mentioned their baby is due in August, but that`s wrong. Kayden (possible name) is due September llth! You read that correctly.
Nita asked me to write a few words about one or two of my readers. I thought I had, but I`ll let you into the lives of two of my readers/friends. Hiroko Miyokawa and her daughter (Riho...11 years old) have grown close to my heart. Hiroko is an office secretary. She is a very sweet person. Hiroko recently celebrated a birthday and couldn`t wait to show me her electronic dictonary. Many of the readers have these e-dictionaries to help them with their translations. After testing the waters to see what LST was all about and that we weren`t bogus, Hiroko started bringing Rhio along to the reading sessions. I pray this child will someday know Jesus along with her mom because she`s very intelligent and humble. Right now Hiroko is on lesson 3 and has questions about angels and why one(Gabriel) was sent to deliver the message to Mary about her being the mother of our Savior. She also ask very good probing questions with each lesson. Hiroko struggles a little with her English, but is making great strides. It`s her lack of confidence she has to overcome. I will be introducing Hiroko to the women`s class in hopes she`ll stay connected to the church when we leave. Pray she`ll accept the invitation to become a part of the women`s group. By the way, did you know you can click on blog pictures to see them up close? I just discovered that.
And my whisper girl! Tomoko Takeda is a precious young woman. She`s in her early twenties and is studying to become a teacher. Now you know we had a lot to talk about on the side after our lessons! This girl is so bashful and speaks so softly that I have to lean in to hear her. Her eyes are as big and beautiful as a doe`s. At our information meeting back on the 15, she told Jeanne she was afraid her English was too poor to benefit from the LST classes so she signed up to do readings with Jeanne which would be in half English and half Japanese. The day she came to read with Jeanne, I introduced myself and asked how she was doing. Jeanne had gone across the room to get a Luke book and not a beginner one. Tomoko answered every question I asked her. We connected and soon discovered she`d read with me instead of Jeanne. I love my sessions with her! Why? It`s because her expressions are so delightful. When she understands the seed thoughts, her eyes dance and the biggest smile comes on her face. She told me she`s happy to be working on her English and understanding a little more about Jesus. She says her boyfriend is proud of her and so are her family members. Alisha Osburn, you`d love working with Tomoko.

Now, speaking of Alisha Osburn......do you remember when her AIMERS team went to Thailand about two years ago? Well, I met someone today who knows Alisha! There were two girls at church today working on fund-raising to grow the church in Thailand. They are doing some sort of internship with a church here in Japan inorder to learn about how to spread the gospel better in Thailand. If I don`t get the picture placed here, it`ll be at the top telling you to read the information down here. The girl in green (Gade...sp) knows you Alisha. It`s amazing how no matter where you go, you eventually run into someone who knows someone who knows someone who know you! Ha! These girls (Yeng in yellow is a talker) also spent some time with the Snow/Wilson team at the Taga Camp this past weekend. I`m going to get you for what you told them about me, Jake!!!! Ha! Ha!

Anyway, Phyllis and I are dog tired as we`ve had two long days. We`ll write about our second party later. The night just sparkled!

Again I say how thankful I am for this opportunity to serve. Our new friends have treated us so well. We just pray we`ve showed them Jesus through our actions and words. Oh, another reader that orginally told me she didn`t want to hear anything about God comes almost every other day! She tickles me. God is beginning a process within her spirit. It takes years for the average Japanese to accept God. If this reader continues studying, I`m not sure it will take many years for her to take on Christ as her savior. It`s not for me to decide that or even worry about the when. It`s all in God`s timing and hands.

Good night

Mr. Risshi Sagusa

Good Evening Everyone,

Many connections are happening here in Tomobe between the readers, the church members, and Phyllis and myself. I`d like to take a moment to highlight Phyllis and one of her readers. Phyllis has been doing a bang up job with her readers, financial record keeping, and all other activities we participate in. Here she is with one of her readers, Mr. Sagusa. He is a retired high school teacher. He`s married and has two grown children. Mr. Sagusa is very anxious to increase his English conversation abilities. Here, on his first visit, Mr. Sagusa brought Phyllis some fruit (picture below) which is similar to apricots. You have to peel the skin off this fruit before eating it. During their conversation, Mr. Sagusa told Phyllis he is taking pottery classes. This has become his hobby. I think Mr. Sagusa was very excited to tell Phyllis this little information about his life. Phyllis says Mr. Sagusa reads English very well, but needs to grow in his daily English conversation skills.
Look at the little bag Mr. Sagusa brought the fruit in. As I watched the interraction between Phyllis and her reader, I was very proud to see how patient and understanding she was with him and all her readers. Guess what? I have a secret about Phyllis! If you want to know what the secret is, find me at church one day and I`ll spill the beans!

Have a wonderful night as I know we`lll sleep great tonight after two days of walking around and doing some terrific sightseeing! We`ll make sure to share the pictures with you all later. Tomorrow is Saturday and we`re having our Independence Party. Phyllis has planned it all out wonderfully. I will do another blog on our upcoming party later.

Our time is running short here and although we`re ready to go home, we`re thinking about our readers. Some are asking wonderful questions about God and the bible. Some are just getting more familiar with the idea of trying to practice English. Some are seeing God through our actions, but have a hard time believing there`s only one God. We don`t force that understanding on them. We`re letting God take that on.

Good Night,

Phyllis and Tommie

Random Pictures

Marlin and Jeanne (sweet Christian folks from what I`ve witnessed) working as usual. Marlin helped with translations during the game. He was co-host with me....so to speak! Jeanne deserves a medal. I don`t know how she keeps up with her hectic schedule. When we need anything, she`s there before we can get the words off our tongues. Thanks Jeanne.
Mark getting the power point ready for Bingo.
And no one is more graceful than Yuriko Sugaya. Mrs. Sugaya is a new reader and is very active in her community. She particpates in many activities at the community center. We are signing her up for her next session for this upcoming week. She wasn`t able to attend the party later in the same day. Maybe God will use Sugaya-san to bring in some of her other community center friends as they are all close. Let`s ask for that possibility in prayer. And yes, we have to take our shoes off inside the houses and church. That`s why I`m wearing those slippers.

Do any of you know these two strangers I just happened to ask to pose in a picture with me? I don`t even know how to begin talking about these two (Jake and Tanya)! Ha! Phyllis and I met up with them in Tokyo. Their other team members, Tyler Snow, Tanis, and Sammy were with us also. Just let me say Woodland West is blessed to have these kids (they are compared to some of our ages). Jake led us to see key spots in Tokyo then escorted Phyllis and me to the train station, put us on the correct train back to Tomobe, and stood there until we couldn`t see him in the crowd any longer. I won`t say much about Tokyo because what happened there, stays there! Ha! Ha! Alright, Brenda Pollard, I`ll tell everyone about our trip there some other time.

Bye folks,
Tommie